Thousands of NL residents driving with invalid driver's licenses

Thousands of motorists are driving on Dutch roads with an invalid driver's license. The road transport agency RDW declared their license invalid, but they never surrendered it, NOS reports based on figures from the RDW and the police.

People's licenses can be declared invalid if they were arrested for driving under the influence, for example. Or if they are considered incapable of driving safely because of health reasons like dementia. Last year, the RDW declared over 10,000 driver's licenses invalid. Over 40 percent (4,240) were not surrendered. The RDW could not give NOS figures from earlier years.

The police also noted an increase in people caught driving with an invalid license - 4,817 last year, or 13 per day. In 2017, the police caught 2,832 people driving with an invalid license. 

The Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, will debate traffic safety with Justice Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius on Wednesday.